After the recent ride, the European lists take a breather and close today's session down. Piazza Affari, which gained 16% in nine sessions, limits the damage to -0,84%, stopping at 20.817 points, under a deluge of quarterly reports, with the accounts rewarding Poste +3,03% and sending Pirelli into a tailspin, -6,52%.
In the rest of the continent, Frankfurt, -1,21% is lagging behind: Paris -1,52%: Madrid -0,92%. Little better London, -0,63%. The trend is uncertain on Wall Street, where too the Nasdaq has changed sign and is currently trading down. After the announcement of an effective anti-Covid vaccine in a short time by Pfizer and Biontech, which gave wings to the markets on Monday, today the focus is on Moderna which, according to the famous immunologist Antony Fauci, should present its results within a week. A positive boost also comes from macro data and new claims for unemployment benefits in the United States, which fell to 709.000, but on the opposite side of the balance, concerns are felt about the daily records of new infections and the consequent restrictions put in place from some States starting from that of New York.
The pandemic on the other hand, it is a black swan that worries the ECB. “The economic recovery in the euro area is losing momentum faster than expected – writes the European central bank in its latest Bulletin – after the strong, albeit partial and uneven, recovery in economic activity in the summer months”. In the current environment, with risks tilted to the downside, the Governing Council will assess the dynamics of the pandemic, the prospects for a vaccine release and exchange rate developments.
In the December projections, the trend will be clearer and the ECB "will calibrate its instruments, where appropriate, in order to respond to the evolution of the situation and to ensure that the financing conditions remain favorable to support the economic recovery". On the foreign exchange market, the euro is moving forward against the dollar, over 1,181. Oil is fluctuating, after recoveries supported by the hope of a relatively rapid exit from the emergency. Brent crude rose 0,66 to 44,09 dollars a barrel. Gold raises its head: 1879,26 dollars an ounce (+0,7%).
The session in Piazza Affari was conditioned by the general picture, but also by the many quarterly reports of the week. The best blue chip of the day is Poste, which he revealed accounts recovering in the third quarter and gave the go-ahead for the distribution of an interim dividend expected for the 2020 financial year, in the amount of 16,2 cents per share. Telecom recovers +1,54%, after the weakness of the day before and the third quarter results in line with expectations.
Hera stops on the upper floors, +1,74%, after the results presented yesterday and the positive reaction of analysts. For Kepler, the stock is "buy" and the target price is revised upwards to 3,60 euros; for Mediobanca and Intermonte the share is "outperform". Well Ampliofn +1,71%; Nexi +1,5%; Interpump +1,09%; Unipol +1,07%.
The sales leave Pirelli on the ground, which yesterday after the markets were closed announced a quarter higher than expected but trimmed the margin forecasts for the current year. The broker Mediobanca Securities has revised its estimates for 2020 and 2021 at the EBIT level by 5 and 3%, "cutting our net profit expectations by 28% and 6% respectively". The weakness extends to the auto sector, Fiat, -2,11%, with Exor -2,17%. Among the industrialists Leonardo loses again -2,73%.
Profit-taking penalizes Banca Mediolanum -2,37%. Generali remains out of sight, -0,15%, after one quarterly higher than expected the market and the postponement to 2021 of the payment of the second tranche of the dividend, as requested by Ivass. “The third quarter results show strong momentum across all divisions. However, despite a Solvency II ratio of 203%, regulators continue to limit dividends”, comments Jefferies.
They are mixed banks: Banco Bpm +1,13%, Intesa -1,25%. Outside the main basket Tod's, +9,62%, celebrates revenues higher than analysts' expectations. Mediaset is still excited, +2,86% and on the contrary Maire Tecnimont slips by 5,26% with the results for the quarter below expectations.
Lastly, the good intonation of bondholders knows no respite. The spread between Italian and German ten-year bonds falls to 118 basis points (-1,72%) e the BTP rate closes at +0,64%. Furthermore, in the morning auctions, three-year bonds reached a new all-time low of -0,19%. Yields for seven-year bonds rose slightly, 0,35% (+1 point). Also offered is a fifteen-year Btp allotted at a gross rate of 1,05%.
The Treasury is also evaluating the possibility of returning to the global dollar issue market and has therefore entrusted Barclays, BofA and Goldman Sachs with the mandate to organize a Global Investor Call in these New York hours. The subject of the market sounding is a new issue denominated in US dollars with a 5-year maturity set in February 2026, with a possible additional tranche with a maturity in November 2050, which may be made in the future, based on market conditions.
